Good Goldman Question From Zero Hedge

While one may or may not have feelings about Goldman’s tentacled capture of various regulatory agencies, the most recent news out of the SEC that it would be hiring a 29 year old former Goldman Vice President Adam Storch as its COO, questions the rationale behind this move. First, and not being ageist here, but a 29 year old to run what is arguably the most critical post at the SEC - that in charge of operations?

I’m not the fan of ZH that some are. To pick nits, the first sentence isn’t grammatical: “the most recent news…questions the rationale behind this move.” And this SEC position is actually COO of the enforcement division, which, true, is just as problematic, but it still isn’t arguably the most critical post at the SEC. Listen, we make mistakes all the time—and they don’t help us, either.

New York’s Joe Hagan makes a good case for Zero Hedge’s (and other financial blogs’) rising influence, with the high-frequency trading issue presented as “Exhibit A.” In that case, an esoteric issue was bandied around specialty blogs for a while before exploding onto the front page of The New York Times and into the halls of Congress. We had problems with some of how it all went down, but the heat on the issue also generated plenty of light. Time summarizes the thinking about ZH here.

This is all a long way of saying I don’t know whether it’s okay to rely on Zero Hedge’s facts, like:

Based on his record, Mr. Storch is not even a licensed (Series 7/63) broker:

But dagnabit, this isn’t about Zero Hedge!

The SEC says Storch worked for five years in a unit that reviewed contracts and transactions for signs of fraud. Also the enforcement chief says his “skill in technology systems, workflow process, and project management will greatly benefit the division.”

And yet the question remains. What’s the answer?

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